© 2004 by Oxford University Press
Empress Josephine's collection of sculpture by Canova at Malmaison
The conjunction of personal taste and the formation of a collection of sculpture by Canova on the part of Josephine de Beauharnais Bonaparte are here examined. The Grande Galerie at the Chaâteau de Malmaison was transformed by its owner into the setting for the finest private collection of works by Europe's most famous artist. Josephine's collection of Canova statues is considered in the context of her considerable interest in sculpture generally, above all in the sensuous, graceful themes of Rococo sculpture and in the works of her contemporaries that embody these aesthetic qualities. This is related to her awareness of her own historical position as a powerful female patron in the tradition of Madame de Pompadour, Madame du Barry and Marie-Antoinette, among others. The Canova connection, however, was the only one that resulted in the creation of original works on commission, Paris, Dancer with her Hand on Her Hip and The Three Graces. Other statues in her collection were either bought on the market from their owners or creators, received as gifts from friends and well-wishers, or were variants of Canova originals. The paucity of commissions for original works for the collection of a politically prominent figure is rare in the early modern era but is a clear indication of a shift in collecting practices that favoured the purchase of known commodities rather than direct, sustained creative interaction between artists and patrons.
+ Address for correspondence Christopher M. S. Johns, Norman and Roselea Goldberg Professor of Art History, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.